Improvement in apparatus for distilling petroleum



UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE ORAZIO LUGO, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

IMPROVEMENT EN APPARATUS FOR DISTILLING PETROLEUM, &C.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent N0. 53d 13,'dated September 18, 1866.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ORAZIO LUGO, of the city, county, and State ot' New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Process of Distilling Petroleum and other Oils; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part ot' this specication, in whichf Figure l is an elevation, mainly in section, of a distilling apparatus, illustrating my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan ot' the same.

Similar letters of reference indicate correspending parts in both gures. l

This invention relates to the introduction of atmospheric air or other gaseous substances during the distilling process among the vapors eliminated from petroleum or other oils by the heat applied to the still, for the purpose of expediting the distilling process and improving the quality ofthe distilled oils. y

In my Letters Patent dated January 2,1866, I have described the admission of air into the still. Subsequent experiments have,however, led to the discovery that after the vapors of the lighter oils have passed over from the still and the temperature of the' still is raised to evolve the vapors of heavier oils, it is desirable to introduce the air or gas into the goose-neck or exit-pipe of the still, in order that it may not become, bypassing too great a distance in contact with the hot vapors, so highly heated a-s to combine with the hydrocarbon vapors in such manner as to generate or form-ammoniacal gases, and the point of admission of the air or gas requires to be varied as the increase of temperature is continued in order to shorten the distance between such point and the condensing apparatus.

This invention `therefore consists in the admission of the air or gas into the goose-neck or exit-pipe ofthe still, and `in varying the point of admission to the still and goose-neck or exit-pipe as the distilling process progresses.

To enable others skilled in the art -to carry out my invention, I will proceed to describe iti with reference to the drawings. '1

A'is the still, which, for the purpose of varying. and regulating the distance from the condensin g apparatus at which the air is admitted,

with a stop-cock, L', which is closed when the I prefer to make of horzontall y elongated form. It is heated by a furnace below, and lled through a pipe, G. p

a is the goose neck or exit pipe, which is continued through the cooling-tanks ot' two condensers, O O, of ordinary construction.

inlet end of which there is a stop-cock, K7 to shut oft' or regulate the supply. The said pipe K is connected with the end of the still far thest from the exit-pipe a` at different heights by means of stop-cocks K' K2 K3, alsowith the top of the still by a stop-cock, K4, and with the exit-pipe a, by stop-cocks K5 and K6 at different distances from the still.

From the reservoir E a pipe, Q, leads to a third condenser, D, to convey thereinto such condensable volatile products as may arrive in the receiver E and be not condensed therein, and this pipe is continued in the form of a coil through the said condenser, with an exit at N for the condensed volatile liquid substances.

M is an exit-pipe for the distilled oil from the receiver E. R is an exit-pipe for the uncondensable vapors or gases from the third condenser, D, and R' is an exit-pipe leading from a trap in the exit-pipe outside of the second condenser, G', for the escape of gas or light vapors when the distillin g process is conducted in the ordinary manner with the pump and air-pipe K shut oft', as maybe temporarily necessary in case of the pump being out of order, or for any other cause. L is the exit for the oil from the still when the pump is not in operation and the air shut oit', furnished pump is in operation and airis admitted among the vapors. Other stop-cocks, not necessary vto mention, but the necessity of which will suggest itself to the practical distiller, may be used in the various pipes. 1

I will now describe the operation as I have practically conducted it on a large scale.

The still is filled to Within about three inches from the stop-cock K3, the fire applied, and as soon as the distillation commencesthe stopcock L is closed, and communication of the exit-pipe with the pump F and the cock K7 are opened, and the pump is set in motion;

v and at the same time the stop-cock Ksis opened to admit air into the still-iirst, for the purpose of creating a current in connection With the pump F, to counterbalance the diminishing pressure of the gases inside ot' the still, which, if not counterbalanced, would force the formation of vapors to suchl a degree as to carry them undistilled into the condensers.

The temperature of the vapors may be supposed at this stage 0f the distillation to be about 1500, and the gravity of the product about S00. Stopcock K3 may bekeptopen until the gravity ofthe product has fallen to about 700, by which time, the temperature having increased, I open the stop cock K4, shutting K3, in order to shorten the distance which the admitted ai r will have to travel before reaching the con densers, for if K3 had remained open and K4 remained 'shut the distillation must have stopped, or

sans

tilled products falls to about 620, when, the heat having' again increased with the gravity ot' the oil, it again becomes necessary to shorten the distance which the air has to travel in order to prevent its becoming overheated, and giving` rise again to the formation of ainmoniacal gases; and proceeding on this principle I open K5 until the gravity falls to 550; then, for the reasons already given, I open KG, either alone or With K5, until the gravity ot' the product falls to about 490; then l open K7, shut all the other stop-cocks but K8, and keep K7 open until nothing remains but the tar, which is then run off from the bottom ot' the still into the condenser B.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The admission of air or gas into the gooseneck or exit-pipe of the still, substantially as and for the purpose herein specitied.

2. Varying the point otl admission ofthe air or gas B into the still and goose-neck or exitpipe as the process of distillation progresses, substantially as and for the purpose herein setforth.

. ORAZIO LUGO.

Vitnesses:

HENRY T. BROWN, A. LE CLERC. 

